Cryptosporidium parvum
Cryptosporidium parvum
Taxonomy
- Kingdom Protozoa
- Phylum Apicomplexa
- Class Conoidasida
- Order Eucoccidiorida
- Family Cryptosporidiidae
- Genus Cryptosporidium
Final host
Mammals, birds and reptiles
Morphology
Oocysts are very small (≈ 4-6 µm) and sporulate within the host Each oocyst has four sporozoites and lack sporocysts Oocysts passed in the faeces are thick-walled (a minority of oocysts are thin-walled and remain in the host causing autoinfection)
Cycle
Direct (faecal-oral route)
Location
Brush border of epithelial cells mainly in the gastrointestinal tract
Feeding
Holozoic (micropores)
Diagnostic
Oocyst
Transmission
Sporulated oocyst
